Weak financial controls in provincial health departments pose significant fiscal risks, according to Treasury’s medium-term budget policy statement (MTBPS), tabled in Parliament on Wednesday. Treasury highlighted unpaid obligations, mounting debts and medico-legal claims as key pressures on health budgets. Audit Outcomes and Unpaid Bills Five of the nine provincial health departments received qualified audits for 2025/2026, the Auditor-General told Parliament…
Tag: NHLS
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NHLS Governance Crisis Prompts Ministerial Intervention
The NHLS governance crisis has prompted Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi to appoint three senior figures to address deteriorating oversight and financial management. The intervention follows missed deadlines for the National Health Laboratory Service’s 2025/26 financial statements and annual report. Meanwhile, provincial health departments owe the organisation R10.6 billion, threatening its financial sustainability. The NHLS provides almost all diagnostic testing for…
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NHLS Scrambles as Pathology Services Funding Runs Dry
The National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS), the backbone of South Africa’s public pathology system, is scrambling to secure new blood-testing providers. This follows the service running out of money for key pathology services. The contract covering small and medium haematology labs at several of the country’s largest hospitals has lapsed. Funds in a central purchasing arrangement ran dry. The affected…
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NHLS Debt Crisis Puts Public Healthcare At Risk
The NHLS Debt Crisis is raising serious concerns about the stability of South Africa’s public healthcare system. By March, provincial health departments owed the National Health Laboratory Service about R11bn for critical services already provided. The NHLS plays a central role in public healthcare. It provides diagnostic testing, disease monitoring, outbreak support, HIV and TB programme services, forensic pathology expertise…
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NHLS Debt Crisis Threatens Public Health Laboratory Services
The National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) is facing an unprecedented financial emergency. Parliament has demanded immediate accountability from provincial health departments for debts of over R11 billion. This huge financial burden threatens the stability of South Africa’s public medical testing network. Understanding The NHLS Debt Crisis Impact The NHLS operates approximately 233 diagnostic laboratories across South Africa. These facilities provide…
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Diabetes Dashboard Launches To Speed Up Care In Public Clinics
The National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) has launched a new Diabetes Dashboard to provide public health workers with near-real-time visibility into patient management across the country. According to the NHLS, the platform helps clinicians and programme managers spot poor glucose control earlier, allowing faster intervention. This tool arrives as civil society and health leaders increasingly frame diabetes as a national…
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NHLS TrakCare Outage Exposes Backup Power Gaps
South Africa’s National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) reported an ongoing disruption to its TrakCare information system. The outage left health professionals across the public sector unable to access patient results, disrupting routine care and time-critical decision-making. The NHLS provides diagnostic pathology services nationwide. It supports public facilities through a network of more than 300 laboratories. Because public sector clinicians rely…
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NHLS Cancer Test Outsourcing Hits R116m As Backlog Cleared
South Africa’s National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) spent approximately R116 million between June and November 2025 to outsource cancer pathology tests to private providers. The emergency measure came in response to a national outcry over dangerous delays in public diagnostic services. NHLS Cancer Test Outsourcing Clears Critical Backlog The crisis intensified at the Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital (CMJAH), where…
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NHLS Cyberattack: A Decade’s Worst Audit Results
A cyberattack on South Africa’s National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) last year led to its worst audit outcome in over a decade. The Auditor-General issued a disclaimer of opinion on its 2024/2025 financial statements. The NHLS cyberattack exposed deep-seated financial vulnerabilities within the public health body. It is also grappling with a R173.4 million deficit and provincial debt now standing…
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NHLS Cancer Testing Delays Outsourcing Solutions
The National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) has confirmed it is engaging private sector laboratories to address a critical backlog in cancer testing at its Johannesburg facility. This backlog has left some public healthcare patients waiting as long as three months for potentially life-saving diagnostic results. The NHLS, which forms the diagnostic backbone of the nation’s public health system, is facing…
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Unpaid bills threaten medical tests as NHLS struggles
The parliamentary health committee recently learned that provincial health departments, except for the Western Cape, owe the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) R8.9 billion in unpaid debts. CEO Dr. Koleka Mlisana deems this growing debt “unsustainable,” especially given expected budget cuts that will impact funding for essential laboratory services. The NHLS conducts vital medical tests for state hospitals and clinics…
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Cyberattack on NHLS disrupts patient care
Health workers, despite the challenges, are tirelessly working to mitigate the severe impact of a cyberattack on the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS), significantly hindering patient treatment. Doctors at two major state hospitals in Johannesburg report that critical medical procedures have been postponed due to the NHLS’s inability to upload test results online since the cyber hack on June 22.…